Derek McCarthy to Kilkenny...

[sadloserkid]

You heard it here first... Tommy Lynch is looking at bringing Derek to Kilkenny Town as well as a few other ex-Limerick players (Dunphy was mentioned). Any thoughts? The Derek McCarthy of old was a huge loss to us but given that he was nearly crippled with injury how good is he now? Apparently he feels Limerick treated him awfully though...

[LFC in Exile]

He shouldn't be allowed to go because we are light in that area. Maybe he will not be as effective as he was before but until we get more strikers he should be held on to. That said, if he is unhappy and would be an unsettling influence on the squad.....

My own feeling would be that the club should try to mend fences and hold on to him.

By the way, Tommy Lunch at Kilkenny? Always going to be a problem for Limerick as he would target some of our players. Is he taking Albert with him to City?

Thinking about it, there are few enough players who are still on the first team and played under Lynch. The Whites, Brendan Hughes (?), Oran Weldrick, is that it? Means that the team has been completely rebuilt by O'Connor. And what was Lims Fan saying about no transfers etc.?

[sadloserkid]

Well, he hasn't been on our books for about a year and a half now so any talk of keeping him is a bit redundant. There's a massive personality clash between himself and Noel so I wouldn't bet on seeing him in a Limerick shirt anytime soon unfortunately.

[LFC Blue]

Judging by what you just said about McCarthy and O'Connor I presume Derek is no longer working with Noel???

[sadloserkid]

Eh... no

;)

[BlueisBeautiful]

Since when did Tommy get the Kilkenny job?

[sadloserkid]

Twas in the paipéar last week, apparently he's hoping tom bring two car-loads of ex-Lims with him and has taken a sizeable pay cut too.

[Nempton]

It is I loverboy...no wait wrong website ahem it is I Nempton. SLK knows who I am.

Just to clear a few things about what I know about Derek. In regards to his fitness I can tell you now he is playing five a side in Buttevant with a couple of lads from back home and by the sounds of it he is getting back into good shape and the back is holding up well. He still has the little flicks etc. There was talk at one stage about Dublin City last season but he wasn't too keen on it. I did not know that Tommy managing Kilkenny was official but if it is I would definitely say then that Derek will play for Kilkenny along with 3 other ex-Limk players. One of them is playing with Ballynanty at the mo so thats why I presume it is Dunphy...well it couldn't be Gareth Ryan for cripes sake I'm sorry. But I'm hoping to get confirmation about the 3 others tonight so I'll let SLK know when I find out.

Derek doesn't work at Noels anymore. When he hurt his back Noel didn't bother with him, Michael O'Sullivan told me he had been in regular contact with him when in fact he only rang him once. But back to Noel to keep it brief, unlike Tommy who rang Derek to ask him to play for him, Noel got one of the players to ring Derek to see when he was coming back to the squad. Noel never contacted him once whether regarding work or soccer to see what was happening with him (Theres a lot more to this). So we should applaud Noel's managerial skills because he has driven away a good player who was committed to Limerick FC.
As for Tommy he is taking a pay cut, he had been earning loads of dosh at Hill Celtic but he always wanted to stay in the Eircom League. I think when he left Limerick it was more to do with the lack of ambition and organsation within it, he should have stayed instead on however instead of leaving because at least we have seen some small of improvement last season but i'm afraid Limerick FC still have drastic improvements to be made to it.

I'm glad to see Steve O stay on, I think Limk should sign Tobin and Hayes of St. Michaels to strenthen our striking options. I don't think Noel would resign Harmon which is a shame.

Bye

[sadloserkid]

Alright Nempton (did ya see what your supporters club said? ;) ) good to have you here. I've heard that Dunphy is definately on his way to the little cats club as well. No doubt that McCarthy is a huge loss if his fitness is back, I've a horrible feeling that we could see him banging one in past the incoming keeper Mr.Healy... Should get a better idea of where we stand after the first couple of friendlies anyway.

[sadloserkid]

Nempton has just informed me that the Tommy Lynch shopping list includes Derek McCarthy, David Dunphy, Paul Harmon, Deccy Considine and an ex-Limerick and Galway keeper (Eddie Hickey I presume) Lynch hasn't taken the job quite yet, having informed the Kilkenny board that he'll need a bigger budget otherwise they'll finish last again...

[lims fan]

he is a dim, sad, ignoramous who has denied us the skills of mccarthy. O'Connor is scum

[LFC in Exile]

You're a howl Lims Fan. Lol. :)

[sadloserkid]

McCarthy signed for Tommy Lynch at Kilkenny on Friday.

[BlueisBeautiful]

What the **** is O'Connor thinking letting a player like that slip away. Regardless of petty personality clash issues or whatever the problem was, a working relationship should have been kept for the good of the club. I really can't believe it!!
Baffling!!

[sadloserkid]

Originally posted by BlueisBeautiful
What the **** is O'Connor thinking letting a player like that slip away. Regardless of petty personality clash issues or whatever the problem was, a working relationship should have been kept for the good of the club. I really can't believe it!!
Baffling!!

I agree. I still dunno how good McCarthy is after his injury but given the sparsity of options we have up front and the fact that Barry Ryan was retained surely there would have been a place for Derek? Plus Derek was class when he was with us before and for that reason alone he deserved another shot.

[JohnD]

Thats a disgrace !!. We could do with him so badly. It is a very bad sign of a manager when personalities are allowed to dictate who plays. Beckham doesnt get on with Fergie after all yet he still plays. No wonder we are in the state were in !!

[sadloserkid]

I agree that more of an effort should have been made but to be fair to Noel, Derek has a lot of answering to do as well. Other players who don't get on with Noel are still with us so why not Derek. There's fault on both sides here but the end result is the same - we're missing out on a player who was absolutely top drawer when we sw him last.

[Nempton]

I think Noel left Derek no choice. He ignored him when he got injured not just regards Limerick Fc but at work as well. Derek had worked at Noels butcher shop for quite a few years, perhaps and this is just speculation, Noel was afraid Derek might have injured his back at work and make a claim against him.
Noels people skills is very lacking but I think other factors came into his head. When he realised that Derek was ok, probably either through me telling Michael O'Sullivan or some of the players Derek is friendly with, he got one of the players to ring to find out when he was coming back. Noel made no effort on his part to reconcile the differences between himself and Derek. I don't think it should have come down to Derek to make the first move. I'd also put the blame at Michael O'Sullivan because we all know Noel is not exactly forthcoming and friendly, our chairman could have intervened and stayed in touch with Derek. For a player so highly thought of (lets not forget that when Limerick were in financial trouble over a year ago, Derek was seen as a way to get some cash into the club with a couple of clubs looking to take him away) all he received was one phone call from Limerick fc. Its pathetic. Derek like the Whyte brothers was Limerick through and through, when over a year ago and there where fears we would be kicked out he was committed to staying at Limerick and play junior football with them. I'm sorry to see him go because himself and O'Flynn would have being a fantastic strike force but cest la vie...I for one will wish him the best of luck in Kilkenny and I know he will come back and haunt Limerick.

[BlueisBeautiful]

.... SLK you know the story here, so I can't see how Derek can be blamed for anything. He wanted to play but - well.......

[Fr. Joe]

At the end of the day it boils down to one man and one man only, it's about time we said adios to our beloved butcher of a boss.

[JohnD]

I agree we are never gonna win anything with him. He needs to go now before the season starts and somebody enthusiastic put in place. We dont ned someone with a chip on his shoulder leading us to the bottom of the division again

[sadloserkid]

Originally posted by sadloserkid
Other players who don't get on with Noel are still with us so why not Derek?

None of ye addressed this lads. I'm playing devil's advocate here because I agree with you all that Noel has messed up big time but it's too easy to only blame the guy who's left behind. If Derek really wanted to play so badly surely he could have made a call? Yes, it may have been Noel's place to do it but that's no reason that Derek shouldn't have made a call if he was that keen to play for Limerick again. Derek McCarthy is a class player and I would still have loved to see him playing in the blue again but it's not to be because (and maybe he's right) he won't play for somebody he doesn't get on with. At least four members of last years first team squad are in the same boat but they're still with Limerick. Noel's people skills? Non-existent, no doubting that but no matter what your views on the man it's not as black and white as people here are making it seem.

[Nempton]

Dar, you say that it's not necessarily all Noel's fault and I agree. Michael O'Sullivan is also partly to blame. Let me put it to you like this, last season at our final home game against Kilkenny Derek turned up at the Jacks. During the game Noel was busy pondering about the meaning of life, but what was Michael O'Sullivan doing. He saw Derek that day, he saluted him and that was it. He had the opportunity to ask him was he coming back to Limerick, he could have asked him to meet Noel and reconcile their differences but he didn't. Derek presented himself to Limerick at that game.
Noel would have known he was there after the match because Derek was meeting a couple of the players for a few drinks. Noel could have done something there and then. God knows that he knew he needed some bit of class on the field after what he had just witnessed at the Kilkenny match. I don't think Derek would have done what Mannering did in that match (albeit a diificult chance) as in rob the goalkeeper and have an empty net and his first reaction is to pass the ball rather than shoot.
Look at Alex Ferguson and Van Nistlerooy. Ruud was all set to sign for Utd but he got injured and had to return to PSV, what did Ferguson do, he kept in touch with Ruud and reassured him that he was still wanted and thats just it, Limerick FC made Derek feel unwanted. There was no need for Derek to turn up at the Kilkenny game he could have met the players later on in the pub but the fact is he did and what did Limerick do...nothing.
Derek is a mate of mine who I am sad to see is no longer involved with Limerick. It's only through Derek (and Trev as well) did I start getting interested in Limerick hence why I'm pretty annoyed with the club.

However I'm Limerick through and through and I'm going to keep supporting the club and hope we trounce Kilkenny (especially at home) in the new season. Also John D I'm afraid I have to point out that we have won something under Noel...the League Cup. I think Noel personally is a **** and thats being polite about it and would love to see a manager of better calibre at Limerick but we have to make best with what we can and who knows maybe this year we can do what Cobh did and get into the playoffs. I think its something Limerick could achieve if they get their act together including off the field affairs. Lets just see what the season has in store for us...